CoffeeShop Teeny Tiny World PS/PSE Free Actions!

Now for some fun! There is a neat little technique to make your travel photos look like toy models and is called faking tilt-shift. I wrote two little actions that do it for you; CoffeeShop Teeny Tiny World and Teeny Tiny World-Custom. The first one puts a rectangular section on your image and you transform it to taste (that area will be in focus), along with adjusting the feathering. The Custom action does not make a selection, but has you paint in a layer mask to remove blur after the action has run. Both actions have Saturation and Contrast layers that you can adjust layer opacities and both actions also have layer masks on the blur layer so you can "paint" in sharpness with a soft low opacity black brush. Paint in the "main" area with a 100% opacity brush, and then lower the opacity and stroke above and below it so it gently feathers out.

Sure, this is a gimmick, but it is fun! If you have any questions about these actions, please post them at my CoffeeShop Flickr Group. In this zipped action folder you will find an action set for Photoshop CS and a seperate folder for Photoshop Element users. The PSE version uses Gaussian blur (which you can adjust as it runs) and the PS version uses Lens Blur. If you find the blur too much just use a soft black low opacity brush and paint over the layer mask.

Download CoffeeShop Teeny Tiny World PS/PSE Action Set HERE or HERE!

I also wanted to mention that I forgot to tell you guys that you can use the CoffeeShop Golden Vintage action on B&W images also(see photo below). So don't be afraid to experiment with CoffeeShop actions!

So what is coming out next? More storyboard actions, a cross-processing action that will work in PS/PSE, and a really nice color action (more on that one later). I have so much WIPs (works-in-progress) on my hard drive that I need to get out here. I have been posting on my blog for over a year now and the well is much deeper than I ever imagined with no fear of it going dry!!!

Want all of my favorite CoffeeShop Actions or Design Elements in one simple download AND help support this blog? Just click here for my action pack or here for a download of some of my most popular design elements, storyboards, and textures. For complete info on installing all of my actions, click here.

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CoffeeShop Storyboard 2V PS/PSE Action!

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CoffeeShop Golden Vintage PS/PSE Action!

Here is my newest free Photoshop and Photoshop Elements action, CoffeeShop Golden Vintage. I was playing around trying to get a golden color effect that was slightly washed out and came up with this action. I personally love this enhancement and find it also looks beautiful on landscape and flower images.

After the action runs you can adjust the opacity of the Vintage and Darken layers (both have layer masks so you can mask out either effect on parts of your image). There is also a automatic vignette layer. Try toggling the blending mode from Soft Light to Overlay to Multiply and adjusting the opacity of that layer to get the effect that works best for your image. This action is very adjustable so you can get your own unique look. It even looks great on B&W images:

I will be writing this up as a tutorial and posting it later for those of you who have Photoshop Elements and want to see exactly what I did, step-by-step.

Download the CoffeeShop Golden Vintage PS/PSE Action HERE or HERE!

Want all of my favorite CoffeeShop Actions or Design Elements in one simple download AND help support this blog? Just click here for my action pack or here for a download of some of my most popular design elements, storyboards, and textures. For complete info on installing all of my actions, click here.

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Great Deal on Photoshop Elements 7!

If you want to upgrade to the newest version of Photoshop Elements, then follow this link and Get Photoshop Elements 7 for $59.99 or Photoshop Elements 7 with Photoshop.com Plus membership for $89.99. Exp. 04/23/09. I currently have PSE6, but after reading about PSE7 at Digital Photography for Moms I realized that the program has only become more powerful.

Personally, I am not going to upgrade from PSE6 , but if you have PSE5 or lower it would be a great time to take the plunge. Then ALL of my actions will run in your program! Isn't that a reason to upgrade? ;-) Don't forget that this sale expires on Thursday.

It is one of those rainy days and I am trying to reorganize my files while the boys nap. Here is a photo from a few days ago:

Notice how Duke is kicking Imp. I had some really nice "posed" shots, but this image was my favorite. Also notice the cool vintage chair. In real life, before burning in Photoshop, it is a sickly avocado green velvet with moth holes. It is one of a set of two that my MIL was going to throw out (she did keep the lava lamp, go figure!!!) and I snagged them thinking one day I would redo them. Well, that hasn't happened but with a little Photoshop magic I actually love them!

I did not use any actions on this photo but instead followed some great tutorials on color pop from ilovephotography. It is a bit of work to get to the tutorials (you have to register and then post an intro in the forum at the bottom of the page), but it is so worth it! Andrea Joki and some other amazing photographers have posted some step-by-step tutorials on color and B&W that are brilliant. I have learned so much and this picture was edited using the Lab Mode color pop method (unfortunately it doesn't work in Photoshop Elements, but there are other tutorials that do). I need to work on my dodging/burning a bit more in this image, but you get the general idea.

I am always thrilled to see such amazing artists such as Andrea Joki sharing her techniques and tips. Please go check out that link, you will not regret it!

I have a few actions (one is a really nice vintage action) and a set of storyboards coming out in the next few days. Plus a few more tutorials!

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CoffeeShop Vintage Clipping Mask Frames Set 1 and Tutorial!

Here is a fun set of vintage clipping mask frames.

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Happy Easter! CoffeeShop Lace Brushes and Photo Border.

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CoffeeShop Lomo PS/PSE Free Action!

I have had many requests for a lomo action that runs in PSE. Many of the tutorials out there do not work in Photoshop Elements, and even this action uses a technique PSE users can't access themselves (selecting the individual channels and adjusting their contrast) yet works if written into an action.

So what is Lomo? Here is a bit from Wikipedia: Lomography emphasizes casual, snapshot photography. Characteristics such as over-saturated colors, off-kilter exposure, blurring, "happy accidents," and alternative film processing are often considered part of the "Lomographic Technique."[citation needed] Users are encouraged to take a lighthearted approach to their photography, and use these techniques to document everyday life, as the Lomo LC-A's small size, simple controls, and ability to shoot in low light encourages candid photography, photo reportage, and photo vérité through the much-touted "10 Rules."

Is it crazy that we use high tech camera equipment and editing software and then try to make our images look like snapshots taken on a cheap camera? Heck no! Photography is art and art is subjective and a faux-Lomo look can be fun!

If you want to do this by scratch and not use an action, you can read the CoffeeShop Lomo Action UnWrapped tutorial.  But for now you can play with this fun little action that runs in Photoshop and Photoshop Elements. Just adjust the Black fill layer opacity and Vignette layer opacity and blending mode (multiply, overlay, or soft light) to taste after the action runs. Flatten and rerun the action and adjust the Lomo layer's opacity to taste for even more contrast and color.

Download the free CoffeeShop Lomo PS/PSE Action HERE or HERE!

Want all of my favorite CoffeeShop Actions or Design Elements in one simple download AND help support this blog? Just click here for my action pack or here for a download of some of my most popular design elements, storyboards, and textures. For complete info on installing all of my actions, click here.

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CoffeeShop Photoshop Elements Action Install Tip!

This one is so obvious that probably I am the only person in the world that never thought about it. If you have Photoshop Elements you know what a pain it is to find the action folder when you need to install your CoffeeShop Actions. You have to jump through so many hoops just to find the photo effects folder.So the simple solution? Just make a shortcut to your photo effects folder on your desktop! For some reason I did not figure this out until I got my new computer, but I hope to save others from making the same mistake.




Find your photo effects folder and right click on it and "Create Shortcut". Then drag that shortcut link to you desktop!



Now when I want to install my actions, I just click on my photo effect shortcut and drag the actions and thumbnails right in there! Or copy them from my Action file on my desktop and paste them there. In fact, you can make a CoffeeShop folder in your photo effect folder, make a shortcut of that folder, and then just drag the actions right in without having to open the folder on your desktop. That way you can organize your actions.

I hope this helps save someone time. Oh, and make sure to backup your actions. You certainly don't want to have to download them again if your computer crashes!


Evenings you will often find me in the back fields taking photos of the various "weeds" in bloom as the setting sun paints them in stunning light. This often involves me laying prone in fire ant beds or possibly on terrified snakes. I shudder to think of the thousands of snakes in our fields!

I have been experimenting a bit with textures and wanted to give you a preview of my newest vintage clipping mask frames I am releasing next week. I used this texture from ibisb477 from Flickr and one of my vintage frames on this image I took last week.

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CoffeeShop B&W Classic and Bittersweet Vintage Action Set and Tutorial!

I finally got my act together and made a B&W action that works in both Photoshop Elements AND Photoshop. I already have the CoffeeShop B&W Action set which is great for B&W conversion, but you can't use it in Photoshop Elements. And since I am obsessed with figuring out how to make actions that will run in both programs I had to create this newest B&W action, the CoffeeShop B&W Classic and Bittersweet Vintage set.

CoffeeShop B&W Classic and Bittersweet Vintage is a really nice little action. It has 5 layers after running. The background is your original color image, and then you have a classic B&W layer, a high key B&W layer, a Vintage layer (from my CoffeeShop Vintage Action), and finally an automatic vignette layer. Each layer is quite basic, but when you combine them that is when the magic happens!

This action runs automatically without you having to do anything. After it finishes, just click on the little eye icon to turn on the layers you wish to use, and adjust the layer opacity's to get the custom look you want. Remember, if you leave a layer at 100% opacity, you won't see any layers underneath it. You can see some samples of what you can do with this action in the image above (click on it to see it larger). Turning on a few layers and adjusting their opacity's under 100% will give you some really unique looks.

For example, if you want a classic B&W, just turn on the B&W layer. If you want to add contrast, then also turn on the High Key layer and dial down its opacity to bring a nice contrast "pop" to your B&W image. Or for a nice vintage colored image, turn on the Vintage layer, set it at 65%. Make sure you have the background always turned on if you want any of the original color to show through. Keeping it on will not affect your B&W image if you have a layer at 100% above it. The different types of B&W and soft vintage effects you can get from this action is unlimited, just turn on different layers and play with their opacity's!

Download the CoffeeShop B&W Classic and Bittersweet Vintage PS/PSE Action Set HERE!

I have been lazy and have not been including tutorials with my actions. This is fine for Photoshop users as they can take apart the actions and figure out exactly what I did. But you Photoshop Element users get the short end of the stick as you don't have a clue what I do in these actions. When I started this blog I intended to teach and I plan on doing more of that by trying to include tutorials with each action. This way you can see exactly what I do and you can learn some new techniques. Then if you want to download the action anyway to save you some processing time, at least you will understand what is happening as it runs.

Classic B&W:
For Photoshop Users ONLY:
Channel mixer adjustment layer; +65 Red, +35 Green. Ctrl-J background, then soft light, 25%. I actually do the Channel mixer on a copy of the background rather than an adjustment layer in this action as I found out that even though PSE does not have Channel Mixer, if you apply the effect on a layer it will work in that program.
For Photoshop Elements users:
Gradient Map adjustment layer, black to white. Then levels adjustment layer and adjust gamma (middle slider) to taste to adjust the midtones.

Vintage B&W:
Ctrl-J the background (make a copy). Filter, Noise, Add Noise (4%, Uniform, Monochromatic). Gradient Map Adjustment Layer, enter these numbers as your foreground and background under the RGB to make a dark brown to pinkish gradient (#f8e0f5 to #524113). Put this layer into Color blending mode. Then make a black to white Gradient Map adjustment layer and adjust the opacity to 30%. Then add a Levels adjustment layer and adjust the sliders to 0, 1.25, 245 (to brighten the shadows and bring up the midtones slightly).

High Key B&W:
Add a Gradient Map black to white adjustment layer to make the image B&W. Flatten the image. Then Ctrl-J to copy the background; Filter, blur, Gaussian blur (5) and put that layer in Overlay blending mode. Finally, add a Levels adjustment layer and adjust the gamma (midpoint slider) up to slightly brighten the midtones.

Automatic Vignette:
Gradient adjustment layer (not Gradient Map!) (white to black, radial, 90%, scale 150, Reverse) and then double click on the Gradient and move the white slider on the top right to the left until it reads 5o). Then put this layer in Overlay, Soft Light, or Multiply and adjust the opacity to taste.

If you want your screenshot to look like mine above, after each effect, make a new layer above it, hold down the alt key and go to Layer, Merge Visible and that will do a Stamp Visible (it will make a new layer with everything combined underneath it). Then label that layer, and delete all of the layers that you merged below it (other than your background). Do this with each effect, turning off the effect after Stamping Visible.

Hope you enjoy this action! I have many more actions coming out in the next days/weeks. I have a nice golden vintage one, a set of cross-processing actions, a lomo action, and even an action that will give your scenic images that "fake model" look.




Want all of my favorite CoffeeShop Actions or Design Elements in one simple download AND help support this blog? Just click here for my action pack or here for a download of some of my most popular design elements, storyboards, and textures. For complete info on installing all of my actions, click here.

♥ Read more!